Chef de mission Wardley calls on Government for stable funding

TEAM Papua New Guinea chef de mission Tamzin Wardley has urged the Government to provide stable funding for elite athletes to produce better results in the international arena.
She made the call following Team PNG’s official welcoming last week after competing in the Olympics Games in Tokyo, Japan.
“To the PNG government, it’s your choice,” Wardley said.
“If you want our country to deliver a sport to the very top level then you have to be serious about supporting our elite athletes and their programmes.
“Providing funding a month out before departure does us no good in building performance.
“Yes, it helps pays the bills so that the Olympic Committee is not in debt moving forward but athletes and coaches support must be consistent.
“Funding must be constant and it must be targeted.”
Meanwhile, Wardley said the Tokyo Games was one of the toughest editions, given the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
“Whilst it may not have been a normal Games, we were still there with 204 other countries and the Games were as competitive and vibrant as always.
“To be part of the five rings is very special and I want to remind our athletes that the commentators on social media have absolutely no idea what they’re talking about.
“No commentary tonight would be complete without mentioning the challenges that Covid-19 put up before us.
“They were numerous and costly to overcome, travel was quite simply a nightmare.
“We’re all part of one of the largest challenges set in the world today for a successful and safe Olympic Games during a global pandemic.”